Lethbridge Herald: Letter to editor "Access-a-Ride drivers provide yeoman service "

Lethbridge herald, March 19, 2009

Access-a-Ride drivers provide yeoman service
Written by Jean Korth
Thursday, 19 March 2009

I have a concern and I hope others will agree with me.

Many people don’t understand much about Access-a-Ride (formerly Handibus) because most people are independent and have their own means of transportation or are able to use our great transit system.

I understand it now because I have to use their services to go from south Lethbridge to West Highlands assisted living facility to visit my sister. Their drivers (male and female) are exceptional.

Now for the concerns:
Access-a-Ride drivers do not receive the same wages as transit drivers and yet their responsibilities appear to be so much more. Could something be done about that?
The drivers pick you up at your door, seat you in the bus, take you to your destination, with the same routine coming home, and they take you to the door and wait until you are in safely.

Many people do not realize how much work it is to strap down one to five wheelchairs (maybe more) and ensure everyone on the bus has seatbelts done up properly. When they reach their destination, in the case of the wheelchairs or walkers, they wheel you to the door again. That’s what I call caring.

With children as passengers, if there is no one home, the driver won’t leave them unless the child has a key and the driver makes sure they are in the home before they leave. Otherwise the drivers keep them on the bus.

If I wore a hat, I would take it off to these drivers. They are so polite, caring and friendly and they call the riders by name, which is nice.

Access-a-Ride is an essential service and as more seniors and disabled persons become more dependent on these services, perhaps more buses and drivers will be necessary.

Thank you, drivers, dispatchers and other persons involved in making the lives of a lot of seniors better.

I look forward each day to reading The Herald’s letters to the editor. Many thanks to the contributors.

Jean Korth
Lethbridge